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“And people with a stronger sexual afterglow - that is, people who report a higher level of sexual satisfaction 48 hours after sex - report higher levels of relationship satisfaction several months later.“

The term 'afterglow' is usually used in the context of recreational drugs where a sense of fulfilment, completeness and general wellbeing occurs after the effects of have faded.

It can last from anywhere between an hour and several days.

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The strength of the afterglow is linked with marital quality

Now a study of newlyweds indicates partners experience a similar long-lasting sexual 'afterglow' - and this is linked with relationship quality.

Sexual satisfaction remains elevated 48 hours after sex

Dr Andrea Meltzer of Florida State University

Importantly sex on a given day not only boosted sexual satisfaction that same day but also the next day and even two days later.

In other words participants continued to report elevated sexual satisfaction 48 hours after a single intimate act.

And this association did not differ according to participants' gender or age.

It also held even after sexual frequency, personality traits, length of relationship and other factors were taken into consideration.

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The researchers examined data from two independent studies over long periods of time - one with 96 newlywed couples and the other with 118.

Overall participants' marital satisfaction declined between the beginning of the study and a follow-up session 4 to 6 months later.

But those who reported relatively high levels of sexual afterglow seemed to fare better relative to their peers.

They reported higher initial marital satisfaction and less steep declines in across the first four to six months of marriage.

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Marital satisfaction tended to decrease after six months

The same pattern of effects emerged in each study - providing robust evidence for “sexual afterglow,“ said the researchers.

The findings published in Psychological Science suggest sex is linked with relationship quality over time through the lingering effects of sexual satisfaction.

Dr Meltzer said: “This research is important because it joins other research suggesting that sex functions to keep couples pair bonded.”

Scientists had theorised sex plays a crucial role in pair bonding but most adults report having sex with their partners every few days not every day.

“We explored how long sexual satisfaction would remain elevated following sex and predicted stronger sexual afterglow would characterise more satisfying partnerships.

“We pooled the data from two independent, longitudinal studies of newlywed couples to examine these issues.

“Results demonstrated sexual satisfaction remained elevated approximately 48 hours after sex - and spouses experiencing a stronger afterglow reported higher levels of marital satisfaction both at the start and over time.

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Couple who have sex in the morning tend to have a stronger immune system

“We interpret these findings as evidence sexual afterglow is a proximal cognitive mechanism through which sex promotes pair bonding.”

Previous research has found adults who make love first thing in the morning boost their immune system. The chemicals released during morning intercourse can improve health and mood for the whole day.

Other research has found having sex three times a week could halve the risk of heart attack or stroke and that having sex every day improves sperm quality and could boost the chances of getting pregnant.